Maelstrom (Earth-11584)
History "You complain to me of lack of progress, yet it was your daughter who foiled our plans and meant to betray us the whole time. If we are to be equals in this endeavor, Thanos, then I suggest you start treating me as such." Maelstrom was a Space Pirate who was born on the Inhuman city of Attilan. The son of a respected Inhuman scientist named Phaeder, Maelstrom was raised in the city like many others of the leading families within that community. As was the case with all of his race, Maelstrom underwent the process of Terrigenesis at his adolesence, and gained the power of absorbing and redirecting kinetic energy. However, much like what happened to Inhuman Maximus, the process of terrigenesis left Maelstrom mentally unstable. Seeing his son suffer caused Phaeder to plead with the royal family to look into fixing the process somehow, however they were intransient. Himself an unstable individual, Phaeder attempted to overthrow the Royal Family of Attilan, only to be killed in the process. As punishment for his father's crimes, Maelstrom was banished from Attilan and left to the cosmic winds, placed on a makeshift rocket and sent blasting off to lord knows where. And due to Attilan's proximity to Earth and the Veil of Nine Realms, Maelstrom was left without a way to try and come home. Over time though, Maelstrom would become known throughout the Nova Empire (centered on the planet Xandar) as a space pirate. While not taken as seriously a threat as invasion by the Kree or the Skrulls, Maelstrom was considered one of the most wanted criminals by the Nova Corps. It was around this time that Maelstrom began to be obsessed with the universal concept of Oblivion, wanting to embrace the nothingness of the universe. He declared a "holy war" on Xandar and recruited the mercenary Korath to join his cause. At some point he struck a deal with the Mad Titan Thanos: he would acquire the fabled Orb of Morag and in exchange, Thanos would destroy Xandar and Attilan for him. To accomplish this, Thanos sent his daughters Gamora and Nebula to aid Maelstrom in his quest. Maelstrom first sent Korath to try and retrieve the Orb from its resting place, only to have the mercenary be thwarted by the thief calling himself Star-Lord. He then dispatched Gamora to obtain the Orb, but Gamora had betrayed her father and Maelstrom, and was working for Taneleer Tivan, aka the Collector. Frustrated, Maelstrom was summoned to a meeting with the Mad Titan. Once there, he attempted to threaten Thanos, but the Mad Titan did not heed his threats with anything more than contempt, giving him one last chance to retrieve the Orb before promising him the Oblivion he so desires. Maelstrom and Nebula headed to the Nova Corps Prison known as the Kyln, but found that Quill and Gamora (along with three others) had already left. In response, Maelstrom destroyed the remainder of the prison. Hope seemed lost until they were surprisingly contacted by Drax the Destroyer, who was attempting to lure Maelstrom in as bait to find Thanos. Maelstrom and Nebula followed the signal to the spaceport Knowhere, where they found Gamora and the Orb. After quickly dispatching Drax, Nebula and Maelstrom caught the orb from Gamora and left her to die, with Maelstrom discovering from Nebula that the Orb contained the Power Stone, the creation of his god, the personification of Oblivion. Deciding he didn't need Thanos if he possessed an Infinity Stone, Maelstrom contacted the Mad Titan and informed him that he was ending their deal, before placing the Infinity Stone in a scythe made from his own energy and that of the Power Stone itself. In control of the Stone, he promised to destroy Xandar and Attilan, before setting his sights Thanos himself. He then obtains the loyalty of Nebula, before setting his sights for Xandar. As they approach the capital world of the Nova Empire, Maelstrom finds Xandar protected not only by the Nova Corps, but also the Ravagers and a group calling themselves the Guardians of the Galaxy. Maelstrom attempts to land his ship on Xandar, but is delayed by an energy net generated by the Nova Corps. After finally breaking through with the use of the Power Stone, Maelstrom's ship begins its descent, but the pirate is confronted by the Guardians, who attempt to kill him. They fail, and Maelstrom is about to destroy them all when he is nearly crushed by the crashing ship of Nova Corpsman Rhomann Dey. Maelstrom survives this and the crash landing of his ship thanks to the power of the Stone. He prepares to purge the Planet of all life in the name of Oblivion, but is distracted by Peter Quill via a "dance-off", just long enough for Rocket and Drax to destroy his scythe, freeing the stone. Before Maelstrom can claim it, the Guardians take the stone themselves and, sharing its power, use it to overwhelm the Inhuman pirate and destroy him utterly. Powers & Abilities * Kinetic Absorbtion: Due to his Inhuman genetics, Maelstrom has the ability of absorbing and redirecting kinetic energy used against him. This energy can be used to augment his own strength, accelerate his own healing, form constructs or be fired as concussive energy blasts. As a side effect, Maelstrom was difficult to harm, due to this ability to absorb energy. It is likely this is how he was able to temporarily control the Power Stone before placing it in a constructed weapon of his design. * Weapons Constructs: Maelstrom could use the latent kinetic energy absorbed by his body to make pseudo-psionic weapons made from pure energy. In this way, he controlled the Power Stone in a scythe he crafted that constantly regenerated itself from the power seeping from the stone. * Advanced Scientific Knowledge: Though not shown on screen, Maelstrom is said to have inherited the vast genetic knowledge of the Inhumans through his father, the revolutionary Phaeder. Weaknesses Maelstrom's petulance and seeming constant need for approval was a major downfall of his personality, so much so that Thanos would not take him seriously as a threat, even after Maelstrom possessed one of the six Infinity Stones. While he was well-known as a space pirate, Maelstrom was constantly hounded by the Nova Corps, and was only considered a minor threat until his assault on Xandar. Maelstrom was also obssessed with the personification of Oblivion, and viewed himself as the Avatar for the fundamental force. This obsession drove him to the point of madness. Film Details Maelstrom appears in the following films in the Earth-11584 continuity. In all cases he is played by actor John Malkovich. * Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) Category:Earth-11584 Category:Earth-11584 Characters Category:Bad Characters